Southland: Humanoid History

THE SOUTHLAND

A Fantasy Core Setting

© Jerry Harris 2014

Published here as Open Game Content.

(This link will take you to the Fantasy Core Index.)

Southland Index

Humanoid Lands Index

Humanoid History

The Ancients wanted troops that were more effective than standard humans and could be controlled like domestic animals, as they prepared for their planned conquest of the world.  Different Wizard-Kings had different theories about what would make for more effective Humanoid troops, hence the different races.  This magical construction has limited these creatures’ lifespans to only 10 to 20 years.  Though given their warrior lifestyles, none of them live long enough to die of old age.  

One might question why the Ancients generally didn’t use undead troops, instead of going to all of the trouble of creating the Humanoid races.  They did, before the Civil War, but mindless troops only have limited uses.  During the War, necromantic magic was entirely too common amongst the Ancients.  Attacking with an army zombies, one ran the risk of encountering a more powerful necromancer than yourself and having the army turned against you.  Even a few minor necromancers could turn significant numbers of your troops against each other.

[This is the bane of using completely will-less troops.  The Humanoids might be savages, but did understand the concept of loyalty (of a sort: harsh discipline, fear, and being the sole source of Vegemite were also motivators).  Now in the Commonwealth War back on the home continent, the use of undead troops against the far more numerous, but magically destitute Prophecy Empire troops was very effective, if for nothing else than the sheer shock value.  Necromancy is a forbidden magical art in the Commonwealth by treaty with them.]

Humanoids were designed to be low-maintenance, subsisting on a cloned protein jelly, called Vegemite.  Quite on their own, Humanoids developed a taste for flesh in battle (the Ancient Civil War), though it lacks the narcotic effect of Vegemite (which has a little eucalyptus in it).  One of the Wizard-Kings’ controls on the Humanoids was that their magic was the single source of Vegemite.  With their destruction, the Humanoids had to adapt.

Humanoids can reproduce themselves asexually.  They have no means of sexual reproduction, which was very intentional.  When sufficiently gorged on Vegemite, the Humanoid will generate a clone bud on their back.  It will fall off on its own and mature quickly into a new warrior.  The amount of food and maturation time varies by species.  The Wizard-Kings had complete control over this process by controlling the food supply, whose magical content was necessary to start the cloning process.  The Humanoids hated them, but served them to continue to get the Vegemite and out of fear.  The Wizard-Kings could easily disintegrate masses of them if they got out of line.  The Humanoids would take it out on human civilians whenever they were allowed. 

With their masters’ deaths at the end of the Civil War, that should have been the end the Humanoids.  However, the Catastrophe essentially irradiated the entire continent in magical energy.  This meant that, as they expanded their diet out of necessity, everything they ate (mostly meat) could potentially allow them to reproduce.  There has even been some species mutation and an occasional reoccurrence of the magic trait. 

After an initial population explosion, the Humanoid populations eventually became self-regulating.  In other words, they became too numerous and slaughtered each other over scarce resources.  Since then, their populations have thinned out and stabilized to the environment.  Most tribes and clans roam the Outback for food and move on when an area can no longer support them.  A few clans have permanently moved into specific sites that can support them (and often have some cultural significance). 

Centuries later, this magical irradiation has started to fade.  Areas around some of the coasts (especially the south east) became depleted first.  Humanoids there could no longer reproduce and were forced to move inland.  They could hold and hunt in depleted areas, but couldn’t realistically live there.  The magic saturated areas are continuing to contract and will force Humanoid migration further inland, which will again put them at each others’ throats for that land.  But, it’ll take a long time before it’s all gone.  At that point, the Humanoids will finally die out within about 20 years, unless some Wizard figures out how to make some more Vegemite.

Humanoid tribes are numerous and all warriors, but they are highly disorganized, mostly not very smart (or simply savages), and more prone to fight one another than the colonists at this point, as their interior resources dry up.  It should be noted that however, that the Humanoids have a deep seated hatred for humans.  You can pick out any number of reasons why.            

The Catastrophe took a while to play out before it consumed the entire continent.  The Ancients left copious notes of the effects of it and theories about it.  (Most thought it would dissipate and intended to ride it out.  It was too late to escape when they learned otherwise.)  The Commonwealth colonists have found some of these notes and thus have some understanding the Catastrophe fallout areas and Humanoid reproduction. 

[While some areas to be described are dominated by a single Humanoid species they are by no means the only possible occupants there.  Further, even within each species, there should be plenty of variation.  Check out this post on Monster Variation.]